<b>PENNSYLVANIA</b>

“Another great day on the river,” Bill Brinkman from <b>Brinkman’s Bait & Tackle</b> in Philadelphia said on his Facebook page. He was talking about striped bass fishing on Delaware River on Sunday. Lots of stripers, “from slots to 38 inches,” he said, were creamed from the river that day off the Philly airport on bloodworms and clams. Big white perch chomped off the airport lately. “Out on the main river,” Bill said, 14- to 24-inch stripers were shellacked on Sunday, on bloodworms, clams, bunker and even minnows. Other places on the river that produced lately included downstream from Tacony-Palmyra Bridge, on the New Jersey side, and off Princeton Avenue, on the Pennsylvania side. “What a day (Saturday) was, (too),” Bill said. One customer, fishing from the bank below the Tacony, landed three stripers 31, 22 and 17 inches. Boaters had mixed success that day. Some clammed and bunkered a bunch of smaller stripers, and some got none.

<b>NEW JERSEY</b>

<b>North Jersey</b>

<b>Live to Fish Guide Service</b> trout fished on a couple of trips, Capt. Dave Vollenweider said. On each trip 10 trout were banked from Paulinskill River on Rapala Countdown lures in size CD3. Live to Fish specializes in lure fishing for trout in springtime, when waters are high enough to fish lures. Most of the trout were browns, and browns were now being stocked in the streams. Browns get stocked last, because they tolerate warmer waters better. Brook trout are the first to be stocked, then rainbows, then browns are put in. The fish include some big ones, and Dave heard from a couple of anglers who said they saw giant trout 8 or 9 pounds placed in the Paulinskill. The water level and flow looked pretty good on the Paulinskill, after low waters from the drought this spring. Rains this week will probably help further. Dave saw Pequest River, and it looked low. Dave also fished for largemouth bass with a friend, a tournament bass angler, on Lake Hopatcong on the friend’s boat. They scored well, landing and releasing 20. The friend landed most, and Dave caught two. The friend’s catches included a 5-pounder and a 4-pounder. They fished with A Cabin Creek crawfish lure, working the spawning beds for a reaction strike.  Crawfish, salamanders and lizards are notorious egg stealers, and the bass, not feeding during the spawn, will pick up the critters to remove them from the nest. Most of the bass caught were males, and the males guard the nest after the females lay the eggs. Largemouth fishing is restricted to catch and release through June 15 for spawning, and was very good right now. The lake shallows were 62 to 67 degrees. Looking ahead, nighttime trips for walleyes on the lakes are one of the outings coming up this summer for Live to Fish. Walleyes then move into the shallows to forage on baitfish in the middle of the night, and can be whacked on top-water lures. Dave last year began catching walleyes in mid May on Greenwood Lake. Greenwood remained too low to launch a boat currently. The lake is lowered for dock repairs in winter, and the drought kept the lake from filling back up from rains. Live to Fish Guide Service guides trips for trout, muskies, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, walleyes, crappies, chain pickerel, panfish, yellow perch, white perch, carp and more. Lakes fished include Greenwood Lake, Lake Hopatcong, Monksville Reservoir, Echo Lake, Mountain Lake and Furnace Lake. Rivers fished include the Flatbrook, Pequest, Paulinskill and Ramapo.

“Some nice fish hitting the scales,” said Laurie from <b>Dow’s Boat Rentals</b> in Lake Hopatcong. Walleyes and hybrid striped bass were checked in. Joe Lawson and family from Lake Hopatcong plugged walleyes, hybrids and crappies from shore on Bombers and Rapalas. Eddie Mackin livelined herring to crush a 9-pound 2-ounce walleye and smaller ones. Hunter Good, fishing with his dad and brother, waxed an 8-pound 5-ounce hybrid on herring. Jim Welso zipped hybrids to 8 pounds on livelined herring. Trout were trolled in shallower waters on Rapalas and Phoebes. Clint Myers limited out on crappies at Byram Cove on fathead minnows. Dow’s started opening at 5:30 a.m. on weekdays and 5 a.m. on weekends, closing at 7 p.m.

Lots of trout were pounded on waters including Ramapo River, Pequest River, Dahnert’s Lake and Barbour’s Pond, said Nick from  <b>Meltzer’s Sporting Goods</b> in Garfield. Butter worms were great bait on the lakes, and were scarce this year. Butters sold out quickly each time they were stocked at the shop. One of the crew from the store was catching trout on Wallkill River on meal worms. Largemouth bass fishing, limited to catch and release through June 15, was fair to good. Many of the bass were spawning, but some were yet to spawn, and some already spawned. Fluctuating weather this season made the fish move back and forth onto the beds more than usual. A buddy axed lots of chain pickerel, not many largemouths, at Pompton Lakes on Rapala X-Rap jerk baits. Waters were becoming higher on Greenwood Lake but “are not quite there yet,” Nick said. The lake was low when the drought caused the impoundment not to fill up like usual after Greenwood was lowered in winter for dock repairs. One angler actually banked walleyes from shore at Greenwood on jigs. Waters came up a little on Passaic River, but not much was heard about fishing there locally. Northern pike were caught on the river farther upstream at Twin Falls. On Delaware River at Delaware Water Gap, good walleye fishing and some smallmouth bass were scored. Walleyes might’ve been spawning.

On the South Branch of the Raritan River, Mark Kovacs caught and released an 8-pound rainbow trout, and Dave Allen fly-rodded a 6.37-pound rainbow on an emerger, Jody from <b>Lebanon Bait & Sport</b> said in an e-mail. On Musconetcong River, George Govlich landed a 6.9-pound rainbow. Bart Poole, on Black River, nightcrawlered a 6.28-pound brown trout.

<b>Central Jersey</b>

Striped bass, small, and shad were socked on Raritan River, Braden from <b>Efinger Sporting Goods</b> in Bound Brook said. More than 30 confirmed catches of the stripers, 10 to 20 inches, were heard about from the lower river, and a bunch of sources talked about hooking the shad. A healthy shot of rainbow and brown trout were stocked on the South Branch of the Raritan. They were ready to be caught now, and good catches of smaller browns and rainbows came from the river on Roostertails and Blue Fox spinners. A 6.6-pound rainbow was weighed in from the South Branch of the Raritan that bit a Roostertail. A couple of anglers on a float trip on the Raritan picked at smallmouth bass. One customer tackled and released nine largemouth bass, to a 4-pound female, on Lake Hopatcong. Largemouths must be released through June 15.

Patrick Murphy checked in a 2.24-pound brown trout he plugged at Riverwood Park on Toms River on a Rapala, and reported catching a couple of other trout on the trip, said Dennis from <b>Murphy’s Hook House</b> in Toms River. Rapalas in size 3 worked best on the Toms, and Mister Twisters also caught. Water levels on all the trout streams were normal. Trouting was going okay on Metedeconk River. Power Baits and Roostertails caught. Fishing for white perch somewhat slowed at Forge Pond but still produced. Most of the fish were males, and mostly shrimp or worms on bobbers grabbed them. One angler was beating lots of hybrid striped bass at Manasquan Reservoir on chicken livers from a small boat. Largemouth bass sometimes jumped on the bait, and largemouths must be released through June 15. Many largemouths in the lakes were spawning, but some were yet to spawn, and some already did. Fluctuating weather added to the difference. Fishing for crappies was good on the lakes, and bluegills were biting well in the waters. A few catfish were nightcrawlers at the pond at Pinelake Park. Shiners, killies, nightcrawlers and all the trout worms and baits are stocked.

<b>South Jersey</b>

The striped bass migration was mostly finished on the local Delaware River, said Chris from <b>Harry’s Army and Navy</b> in Robbinsville. Many largemouth bass, limited to catch and release through June 15, finished spawning, and the full moon – the “super moon” this month – passed, so fishing for the bigmouths should take off in the next days. Fishing for bowfins was good on some of the local lakes. Trout fishing was great at the streams, and tons were reported taken from Pequest River.

Trout were going bonkers at Assunpink Creek and Delaware and Raritan Canal, said Tom P. from <b>Sportsmen’s Center</b> in Bordentown. Even a few brook trout remained from the first stockings, and some good-sized rainbows were creeled, and browns began to be bombed. That’s the order of the stockings. No. 2 Skippy Fish in pearl white worked well. Decent trouting and fairly good smallmouth bassing was on at Stony Brook. Fish shrimp-scented salmon eggs or meal worms for the trout, and shrimp eggs, white and chartreuse Trout Magnets or Mister Twister Big X Meatloaf Shads for the smallies.  Smallmouth and largemouth bass must be let go through June 15. Largemouth fishing was very good farther up the D&R at Griggstown and on Millstone River. On the D&R, Senkos and shiners slugged the bass to 5 pounds. One angler shinered a 31-inch chain pickerel on the Millstone. On Delaware River, a few stripers, none larger than 12 to 18 pounds, remained at Trenton and farther downstream, like at Burlington. Chunks of frozen Atlantic herring and, at night, black Bomber lures clocked them. Also on the Delaware, catfishing was super, and walleye angling was good at Dingman’s Ferry.

Trout were swung in from Rowan’s Pond and Oak Pond on minnows, said Ed from <b>Creek Keepers Bait & Tackle</b> in Blackwood. Largemouth bass, required to be released through June 15, were nailed at Blackwood Lake on shiners. Kids had fun with sunnies in the spillway across the road from the lake and at Puppy Land pond. Largmouths were shinered at the pond at the Camden County vo-tech school. New Brooklyn Lake was a place to punch chain pickerel.

Spawning, pre-spawning and post-spawning largemouth bass swam the lakes, said Vince from <b>Blackwater Sports Center</b> in Vineland. They must be released through June 15, and anglers fished for them with lures like rubber lizards. They dropped the lizard in the spawning bed to make the bass try to remove it. Union Lake gave them and smallmouth bass up. Smallies must also be let go through the same date. Nothing was heard about Lake Audrey. Chain pickerel, crappies and bluegills could always be tugged from lakes. Trout were stringered at South Vineland Park Pond, Maurice River and probably Iona Lake. Farther downstream, in the tidal Maurice, striped bass and white perch were winged. Nothing was heard about summer flounder, though flounder season opened Saturday. Maybe flounder were yet to arrive in numbers at places like Delaware Bay.    

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